Oftentimes in a healthcare environment, it is necessary to capture images of a patient. These images can include radiology images, laboratory images, pictures, cardiology images and a variety of other images. These images can be captured electronically in a variety of ways and are used for treatment of the patient. Patient information, such as reports for the images, may also be entered and recorded in a health (or clinical) information system.
While patient information is stored in a clinical information system, the captured images are stored in an archive. Picture archiving and communication systems (PACS) are exemplary digital archives for storing healthcare images, reports, and videos. The captured healthcare images may be stored in a variety of formats including DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine) and non-DICOM objects in native format. In addition, the captured healthcare images are often stored in a variety of locations, depending on the format.
DICOM images are archived according to specific standards for storing, transmitting and handling information in medical imaging. The standards include file format definition and network communications protocol. DICOM groups images together with information such as patient identification so each image is not mistakenly separated from the patient identification. Non-DICOM healthcare images do not adhere to the specific DICOM standards.
Currently, although PACS digital archives can store DICOM, non-DICOM objects in native format, and other storage options, the image viewers to view DICOM and non-DICOM images are separate and DICOM and non-DICOM images cannot be viewed side-by-side within the same viewer. Further, the DICOM and non-DICOM images cannot be accessed from the patient's electronic medical record (EMR). Still further, a clinician is unable to access and view a history of different studies and other clinical images from inside the viewer, making it difficult to understand the entire clinical story associated with the patient.